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Original Description
Reinier de Ridder talks with ESPN's Brett Okamoto following his win over Robert Whittaker in Abu Dhabi.
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Video Transcript
What's up guys? Brett Okamoto from ESPN
joined by UFC middleweight I think you
can call him a title contender Rineer
Derritter who just picked up his fourth
victory in the UFC in a very short
amount of time this year actually this
calendar year you've already got four
victories Rineer this one feel feel feel
feel feel feel feel feel feel feel feel
feel feel feel feel feel feel feel feel
feel feel feel feel feel feel feel feel
feel feel feel feel feel feel feel feel
feel feel feel feel feel feel feel feel
feel feel feel feel feel feel feel feel
feel feel feel feel feel feel feel feel
feel feel feel pretty pretty good
beating a former champion in Robert
Whitaker and now you're going to find
yourself in that probably top five of
the UFC rankings.
Yeah, feels very good. It's nice to be
home after all that work. Um, but yeah,
I'm a happy man.
You know, you said uh I saw you in
another interview say that you've been
so busy. Obviously, four fights in in
about a half a year, five fights in a
full year if you go back to July of
2024. Um, and you said so far your body
is holding up. There's got to be a limit
at some point, man. Cutting weight as
frequently as you are and now a five
round fight, are you feeling a little
bit more run down now after a five round
fight with a former champion? Are you
starting to feel the effects of this
pace?
Yeah, maybe I took a few too many
punches to the face as well in this
fight. Uh, so I felt like yesterday, but
I'm pretty good already. So, uh, yeah,
we'll see. We'll see how I recover.
So, you you're getting all these
victories, which obviously the wind's
got to make the body feel a lot better
than than where you, you know, coming up
short in some of these fights. The win
makes it a lot sweeter. I want you've
had the four fights in the UFC and then
the fifth fight was a year ago in July
actually in the Middle East and I saw
you describe that fight as like you
weren't really sure what what was going
on with your career that it was like an
opportunity a chance that was sort of
given to you from that region and you
know your manager Ali Abdelaziz finding
that opportunity like can you take me
back to a year ago like I mean we know
where you are now I mean top five and
and right there in the title pitcher
where were you a year ago when you took
that fight at UAE Warriors? Yeah. So I
was um still uh according to one
championship on a contract with them. Um
they had just parked me for over a year.
Um then gave me the rematch with Melikin
and then parked me again for a long
period of time and I was just in a
position of not knowing if I was ever
going to fight again for one
championship. Um, in my mind I was
already free because they weren't
offering me fights at all. And um, I had
only signed one contract way back in the
day. Well, the peculi
peculiars are not that important, but
um, um, me and Ali worked out this plan
of fighting for UA Warriors. Um, but we
knew they were going to come with the
lawyers and they were going to come and
sue us. And uh that happened the moment
it got announced. And they not only sued
me but they sued UA Warriors and also
the president for Adaris personally at
that moment. And um I think nine out of
10 um of presidents of uh local
organizations, smaller organizations
would have folded at that moment. They
would have said uh this is not worth it.
Uh go look for another place to fight.
Um but they did not. They said, "We're
going to support you. Whatever happens,
we we'll figure it out together." Uh so
um that really made me
um able to take this opportunity to get
loose from uh from uh one championship
to leave them and to fight for another
organization. And that led to me
fighting for the UFC this entire crazy
year and then coming back exactly a year
later in Abu Dhabi in my first UFC main
event is all thanks to that moment one
year ago. So uh yeah, crazy. It was a
crazy full circle moment this weekend.
Yeah, and I I kind of knew a little bit
of those details, but I hadn't really
dug into them. And so you like did you
want to fight in Abu Dhabi or did it
just sort of happen that way like like
be to get that full circle moment? Was
that something that you wanted sort of
to have it kind of serendipitous like
that?
No, I didn't even I didn't think of it
at all. But then after the bow fight,
they called me two days later and uh
they said uh do you want to fight in Abu
Dhabi main event Robert Whitaker? And I
said uh yes, yes, and yes, let's go.
And then it was exactly uh to the day it
was a a year ago that fight for UEI
Warriors. So it's just
just you cannot you you cannot imagine
it like that. You can't u write a script
like that. So very cool.
It is it's it's crazy to like look back.
I mean your last fight in one didn't go
your way. The fight ended with you not
even wanting to get up off the ground to
to to continue on in that fight. Where
were you like uh just mentally and and
like were you down? Were you like like
were you were you contemplating the end
of your career like like that you were
in an organization that you weren't
getting fights very frequently like like
it's so it's so easy now hopefully to
talk about it because things are going
so well. Were you pretty low or were was
it were you were you getting through
that time pretty pretty well?
Well, personal life has always been
great. I've always had a a lovely wife,
my kids. I have a gym here that that has
always been amazing. But um I've been
very very frustrated with one for the
last couple of years. In the beginning I
got a lot of opportunities with them and
um they had a few very good ideas
remember with um the knee to a grounded
opponent. They were trying to stop
weight cutting. Uh they had a lot of
cool stuff going but um they were
supposed to do drug testing and stuff.
Um but that kind of fell off uh uh more
and more and I was just fighting juad
after juad,
the one bigger than the other. Um
begging to get fights, uh eventually
trying to
um beat heavyweights because I got so
arrogant that I thought I I would be
able to fight two weight classes above
my own. um and um it wasn't uh it wasn't
in my cards and then at that time
everybody everything started to fall
apart in one championship as well. There
were no more events. There were no more
new people uh coming in. There was
nobody to fight except for people in
higher weight classes.
So just everything went to I lost
because I wasn't I I wasn't putting in
the work like I used to. I got a little
bit uh too arrogant and I and I lost
those two fights with Malikin.
Um
and I was just at a point where I was
thinking is this it for my career
because they weren't giving me any more
fights. Um I didn't see any future left
in one championship. They I had been
begging them to let me go for um at
least a year and a half because they
weren't going to give me any fights and
they wouldn't. So, I was just in a point
where I was like,
maybe it's time to call this quits or
what do I do now? And then I started
talking to Ali and he said, um, this is
the way we're going to solve this.
And it was pretty hard to follow it all,
to trust him, uh, and to trust the
people around him because there was a
lot of threats above our heads. We had
just sold our house. Uh the lawyers were
telling us if you have any money uh get
it onto a different account because
they're coming for you on all the
levels. Um and uh it all culminated
culminated culminated into um 30 minutes
before the fight um
that I had to make the decision to walk
out and fight uh with all the uh legal
issues following or I could say I quit.
I I won't take the fight and I would
fall to one championship.
And um that was definitely um a thought
at that moment to to let go and then
we'll figure it out with the lawyers and
then come back. Um but um I'm very happy
that we uh Ali pushed me uh that I had
um Fuadar with the guys there at um at
UAE Warriors behind me and I was able to
flip the switch and say it let's see
what happens and step into the cage and
uh
fortunately I was able to finish the guy
there and um that really led to this
beautiful year that I've had so
Yeah. I mean, that's it's it's crazy
that you were thinking about maybe this
is not the right decision and then you
look at everything that's happened over
the last 12 months. Like, did you feel
like I get in the UFC, this is what's
going to happen? Like, I I'm going to
I'm going to know know the opportunity
that I have and like something like this
is going to happen or would even this
have exceeded your expectations if I
would have told you this is what's going
to happen in 2025?
Well, during one championship, I was
always because it was always hard to get
a an opponent and it was hard to get the
next guy. I was always looking forward.
I was always like even if I'd have a
fight scheduled, I would would be
looking ahead. What if after this fight
there will be nobody there and I was
always frustrated and um
I I really made the con decision to not
do that anymore, to not living be living
in the future as much anymore. uh once I
joined the UFC. So, I I really focused
on just going from day to day, giving it
giving it my all in training and uh
grinding harder than I've ever had. And
in my mind, uh the results would come
and they kind of have uh so far this
year. But that is um one thing I've
really tried to change since I signed
with the UFC, not to be stuck in the in
the future as much.
Yeah. Well, um, you know, obviously I
listened to see your interviews right
after the fight with Robert, but now
it's been a few days. Have you had a
chance to go back and rewatch the whole
thing?
Nah, I didn't there yet. I I need some
time. I need some time. Uh, of course,
it didn't really
I'm very happy with how the fight
happened that I I had to dig deep and um
I had to work as hard as I have. Um, but
it didn't go the way I I wanted it. Of
course, I wanted to just take him down,
choke him out, and or finish him at
least. Um,
and in my mind, it was trending that way
because at the end of the second, uh, I
I was hitting him with some good stuff.
Um, and he came out in the third and
then I heard him again and I thought, I
got you and then I rushed in and he he
clipped me with the with the right hand.
Yeah.
And I threw it away there. So, um,
well, all in all, I'm very happy with
how the fight went, but, uh, I need to,
um, get some courage together to watch
it back, so hopefully I can in the next
few days.
Well, I mean, yeah, you never want to
get dropped in in in a fight, right?
No, definitely. But the fact that it was
your fourth fight in that amount of
time, cut and weight that many times,
and then, you know, you go into
championship rounds against a guy of
Robert's caliber to go in and win those
championship rounds. That has got to
feel really good, right? I mean, that
almost has to feel a little bit better,
I would think, than a first round
submission. Or is the first round
submission you just can't can't top it?
Nah, first round submission would be
better. Just go home, no cuts, no
nothing hurts would be better. But uh
this was a a nice second a nice second
place.
Do you think uh you know I was watching
your interview with Demetrius Johnson
before the fight. I really enjoyed like
listening to you guys going back and
forth and you were talking about all
your work that you do in the clinch
and it just seems to me like maybe this
is going to be a differencemaker for you
because
the way you were talking about it to
Demetrius is that um not a lot of people
like to spend time there. Like they
don't work on it. It's kind of foreign
to them. And we've kind of seen it now
even against a guy like high level like
Whitaker and then against a guy who's
very talented. He still has some growing
to do. But Bo Nickel like that has been
a big difference maker for you or these
knees. Do you feel like um even at the
highest of levels that because of this
is something that just a lot of people
don't spend a ton of time training that
this can kind of be your ace these these
knees that we're seeing?
Yeah. Yeah, I think so. Uh not only the
knees, there's a lot of more inpcs there
in the clinch. Um but um yeah, I think
uh this is uh an important part of my
game and there's just areas in martial
arts that um that are still there to be
exploited. Uh we saw it in in grappling
is which is a beautiful example is a
couple years ago that nobody did any leg
locks and then uh the Dair guys came
along and started leg locking everybody
just because they spend more time there.
And it is um our sport is it's very hard
to get to the top, but there's a few
simple things you can just do to get
better and it's get into that position
and work from there and just spend more
time there than somebody else and you'll
be better there. It's just that simple.
You seem like a film guy. Like whenever
I listen to you do interviews, you
always talk about like we we look at
film, we've seen things to exploit. I I
of course I've got to ask and this is
the obvious one. the champion Drake is
duplic
in in in watching his film and also he's
got like now this notorious reputation
of being kind of an ugly fighter. I
would love to get your take on that.
If there's one guy who's hard to study,
it's him, man. He he doesn't do two
things uh twice. Doesn't do the same
thing twice. He's so so awkward, so
unpredictable. Um,
yeah, I'm I need more time studying him.
He he does a lot of orchid stuff and I
sparred him um a couple years ago at
Kill Cliff and what really stands out in
my mind is the way he kicks. His kicks
come from such a weird angle uh with the
knees a slightly in and um it was very
hard for me to judge where it was going
to go if it's going to be a middle high
or low kick. So, um, yeah, and it's
going to be very hard to find a guy to
emulate him as well, right? There's
nobody else who moves like that.
Mhm.
So, um, yeah, we we'll see. We'll see.
I'll need some more time to study him.
When, uh, when you guys went together at
Kill Cliff,
how familiar were you of him? Did you
were you thinking at that point like
maybe, you know, depending on where my
career goes, I could find my way into
the UFC? Like what what were like sort
of the circumstances around that
sparring?
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. that that was always
on my mind was always think he was just
getting into the UFC I think first few
fights
and we had um uh both fought at UFC. He
was a champion as in EFC in South Africa
back in the day and then um my first
fight out of Europe was in South Africa
there at that promotion. Um we didn't
get a chance to fight there because he
was headed out. He went to KSW at the
time and I went to one shortly after.
Um but um I that was something always
going on in my mind while I was fighting
in one. I want to fight the best guys in
the world one day. Uh so it was in the
back of my mind and we had some nice
rounds over there at Gil Cliff.
Yeah. But did you feel like it got
competitive at all? I mean
how what was the vibe like when you guys
were in there together? No. Pretty
friendly. Pretty friendly. Nobody got
hurt. No.
Yeah. H. In your opinion, how does he
get away with it? How does he get away
with doing all of this stuff that is not
by the book? What is what is allowing
this to happen?
Well, uh, one thing that he does very
well is um, uh, and he did that in the
in his Whitaker fight. Um, some of the
stuff he does is just very basic. Uh
like when a guy comes in with
combinations, he just puts his hands up
and there's not a lot of fighters who do
that very very well. It's it's stupid,
but he just does it very well. He just
puts his hand on his head, his elbows
are in, and he's safe while he's
stumbling back awkwardly, but but he is
safe. So there is um a couple basic
stuff that he does very well. And the
the cool thing is he can keep going keep
doing that stuff nowadays in three,
four, and five as well.
On the other side of that title fight,
of course, it's next month is Hamzat.
Um, and I know you've spoken about him
before, but um, in a way I would almost,
if I was in your shoes, I would I would
want it to be Hamzat in a weird way just
because the guy has done things so
uniquely that if he goes and and wins
the belt, there's just going to be a lot
of attention on him. Is Is that kind of
Do you feel that? Like do you feel like
uh man if I hope this guy just keeps
being a boogeyman because then so much
attention will be on him or do you care
one way or another?
I don't care really care too much but he
would be like an easier guy to prepare
for. Not that it he is an easier fight
but um
is more of a typical style. Um I can
bring a couple Daggerstanis and a couple
Chetchkins in who wrestle pretty similar
to Hamza. Mhm.
Uh he boxes pretty cleanly. Um
like um boxing boxing style. Um so yeah,
it's not that is not that spectacular.
It's spectacular. It's not that special
in a sense that it's not not as weird as
uh as Ras is, you know.
So be harder to prepare for him, but he
might if he wins, he might be the bigger
name. Um, but in my mind, I'm fighting
both those guys in the next 6 to nine
months anyway.
Yeah. Yeah. I hope so, man. And this
division is is so interesting. Um, you
know, Paulo Costa, like there was a fake
tweet that came out that like you guys
were going back and forth. It was fake,
but obviously he did tweet and you did
mention you did respond to it a little
bit on fight night. Is when you say I
see myself fighting Hamzat, I see myself
fighting DIY. Do you see yourself
fighting Paulo Costa any anytime?
I think he needs a couple wins, right?
He This was his first win in a while. I
guess the last one or maybe the Rock
hold fight. That's he won that as well.
Um
and he does well against South Paws. I I
give him that because in the last fight
he did he did pretty good.
Um
but it's not really one that I'm I'm
looking for too much right now. Though
the trash talk would be funny. It would
be funny to uh to do some pressing,
dude. But maybe maybe down the line, but
uh for now um my uh my guy Gregory
Rodriguez would really like to whoop his
ass,
so I'll leave it to him for now.
Another Kill Cliff guy. Last thing I'll
ask you is uh just,
you know, like I mentioned, the the
division is really fun right now. It's
it's seeing a renaissance. It's seeing
like some new blood. It's seeing some
new names come in here at the very very
top. If you had to guess
which one of these top guys like uh and
you got Emov in there obviously you got
Ohio in there if if you're gonna have a
rival over the next 3 four years two
guys that are just like going back and
forth and and distinguish themselves at
the very top which of these guys do you
think it is? Is it the current champ
Duplic? Is it Shamayv? Is it one of
those other guys? If we see some type of
awesome middleweight rivalry with
yourself included, which of those guys
do you think is the most likely?
Um, I I it's hard for me to see Hamzad
like active active. Uh, I don't know how
what you think, but uh it's just he
doesn't fight that much.
Um,
maybe
I can really see that because he's he's
active. He's ready. I think he has a lot
of years still to go. Uh but I love is
another one man. The guy is so complete.
Um he doesn't really seem to be special
special somewhere. U but he's so
complete. Look at the way he knocked out
just out of nowhere in the last fight.
Um he's very young still. So I think um
would be between and maybe even both of
them.
Yeah, I appreciate the time man. I'll
let you go. You've been one of the most
exciting things about the sport this
year. So, thank you very much for the
time and get some rest, enjoy some beach
time with your kids like you said you
wanted and then yeah, we'll see what's
uh we'll see what's next after this
title fight in August.
Yeah, we'll definitely do one. Thank you
very much.
[Applause]
[Music]